St. Louis Cardinals Star Congratulates Shohei Ohtani on Winning MVP Award in Cool Video
During the World Baseball Classic this past March, St. Louis Cardinals' star Lars Nootbaar became really good friends with Los Angeles Angels' star Shohei Ohtani.
The two both played for Team Japan, which ultimately defeated Team USA in the championship. Nootbaar also developed quite a fanbase in Japan and is so well-liked that he delivered a congratulatory message to Ohtani on winning the American League award, through the MLB Japan account.
The transcription is written in Japanese, with Nootbaar speaking in English:
"Shohei, congratulations man, well deserved. I don't think there was ever a doubt that you were going to win AL MVP. I'm excited for you, I'm happy for you, obviously I hope for a speedy recovery for you too. I just want to say congratulations, well deserved, you're the best man."
It was the second MVP award in two years for Ohtani, who is now a free agent and is set to command the biggest contract in baseball history. Despite missing nearly the entire last month of the season with injury, Ohtani hit .304 with 44 homers and 95 RBI. He also stole 20 bases and led baseball in on-base percentage at .412.
As a pitcher, he went 10-5 with a 3.14 ERA. Unfortunately, he won't be able to pitch in 2024 because of an elbow injury.
It's unknown at this time who the biggest suitors for Ohtani are this offseason, but the Los Angeles Dodgers have been connected most often.
As for Nootbaar, he hit .261 with 14 homers with 46 RBI in 2023.
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